• Earnings Release - EN - PDF
• Analysts slides – EN – PDF
• Analyst slides appendix - EN - PDF
• Analyst model - XLS
• Analysts Webcast – 15.30 CET – Link

1Q 2021 Key Highlights:

• Health and safety performance: Protecting the health and wellbeing of employees remains the Company’s overarching priority; LTIF rate of 0.78x in 1Q 2021²
• Significantly improved operating performance in 1Q 2021, reflecting the continued demand recovery which supported a 6.5% sequential increase in steel shipments (to 16.5Mt vs. scope adjusted³ 5Mt in 4Q 2020), the continued positive evolution of steel spreads, and the benefits of iron ore vertical integration
• 1Q 2021 operating income of $2.6bn vs. $2.0bn⁴ in 4Q 2020. EBITDA of $3.2bn in 1Q 2021, 88% higher than 4Q 2020 EBITDA of $1.7bn (vs. $1.0bn in 1Q 2020), represents the strongest quarter in a decade
• Share of JV and associates net income of $0.5bn¹⁹ reflects strong performance at AMNS India and AMNS Calvert
• Net income of $2.3bn in 1Q 2021 as compared to net income of $1.2bn and adjusted net income of $0.2bn in 4Q 2020⁵
• The Company delivered $0.3bn of free cash flow ($1.0bn net cash provided by operating activities less capex of $0.6bn less $0.1bn dividends paid to minorities) despite a $1.6bn investment in working capital, reflecting seasonal as well as market factors
• Gross debt declined to $11.4bn (vs. $12.3bn end 2020) and net debt declined to $5.9bn (vs. $6.4bn end 2020)
• XCarb™ launched, bringing together all of ArcelorMittal’s reduced, low and zero-carbon products and steelmaking activities, as well as wider initiatives and green innovation projects, into a single effort focused on achieving demonstrable progress towards carbon neutral steel. Additionally, during the quarter ArcelorMittal detailed concept plans to dramatically reduce CO2 emissions in Germany and in France, utilizing hydrogen-DRI and EAF steel-making technologies
• Following the formation of a public-private partnership with Invitalia, ArcelorMittal Italia will be deconsolidated as of 2Q 2021. The new company, "Acciaierie d’Italia" will operate independently, with its own funding plans
• The Company completed a $650m share buyback in 1Q 2021 following the partial sell-down of its equity stake in Cleveland Cliffs. Per its new policy²¹, a further $570m of capital is being returned to shareholders through a further share buyback program linked to free cash flow generated in 2020 (ongoing and to be completed by year end) and a $0.30/share base dividend will be paid in June 2021, subject to the approval of shareholders at the AGM

Financial highlights (on the basis of IFRS^[1]):

Commenting, Mr. Aditya Mittal, ArcelorMittal Cheif Executive Officer, said:

“The first quarter of this year has been our strongest in a decade. While this is naturally a very welcome development following a highly challenging 2020, we are mindful that Covid continues to be a health challenge across the world especially in developing economies. Nowhere is this more obvious at present than in India, where we have our AM/NS India JV with Nippon Steel. Our colleagues in India are sending support wherever we can, including providing daily amounts of oxygen from our sites to local hospitals and setting up temporary medical facilities. Our thoughts are with the people of India as they strive to bring this situation under control.”

"Operationally, we have had a very positive start to the year. We are seeing a continuation of the positive market dynamics of the fourth quarter and have been steadily bringing back production in-line with the demand recovery, which is supported by low inventory levels through the value chain. Our priorities for the remainder of the year and beyond are clear: to maintain a competitive cost advantage; to strategically grow through high-return projects in high-growth markets, whilst leveraging existing infrastructure to develop our iron-ore resource; to consistently return cash to shareholders via a defined capital return policy; and to lead on sustainable development.”

“Progress on our decarbonization journey continued with the launch of our XCarb^TM initiative, our first significant step to create a market for low-carbon steel. We are already seeing an encouraging response from our customers. Looking to our wider sustainability commitments, we are very focused on improving our safety performance. Our global health and safety council has been reconfigured and tasked with implementing the changes required to drive a step change in our results. We have also announced a new target to double the amount of women in management to 25% by 2030, which will ensure that we have a rich and diverse workforce ready to take full advantage of future opportunities.”

First quarter 2021 earnings analyst conference call

ArcelorMittal management including Aditya Mittal, Chief Executive Officer and Genuino Christino, Chief Financial Officer will host will host a conference call for members of the investment community to present and comment on the three-month period ended March 31, 2020 on: Thursday May 6, 2021 at 9.30 US Eastern time, 14.30 GMT and 15.30 CET.

The dial in numbers are:

To listen to the earnings release webcast live, please visit the results section on our website here. 

Forward-Looking Statements

This document may contain forward-looking information and statements about ArcelorMittal and its subsidiaries. These statements include financial projections and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements regarding plans, objectives and expectations with respect to future operations, products and services, and statements regarding future performance. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the words “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “target” or similar expressions. Although ArcelorMittal’s management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, investors and holders of ArcelorMittal’s securities are cautioned that forward-looking information and statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and generally beyond the control of ArcelorMittal, that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially and adversely from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, the forward-looking information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include those discussed or identified in the filings with the Luxembourg Stock Market Authority for the Financial Markets (Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier) and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) made or to be made by ArcelorMittal, including ArcelorMittal’s latest Annual Report on Form 20-F on file with the SEC. ArcelorMittal undertakes no obligation to publicly update its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Footnotes

[1] The financial information in this press release has been prepared consistently with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”) and as adopted by the European Union. The interim financial information included in this announcement has also been prepared in accordance with IFRS applicable to interim periods, however this announcement does not contain sufficient information to constitute an interim financial report as defined in International Accounting Standard 34, “Interim Financial Reporting”. The numbers in this press release have not been audited. The financial information and certain other information presented in a number of tables in this press release have been rounded to the nearest whole number or the nearest decimal. Therefore, the sum of the numbers in a column may not conform exactly to the total figure given for that column. In addition, certain percentages presented in the tables in this press release reflect calculations based upon the underlying information prior to rounding and, accordingly, may not conform exactly to the percentages that would be derived if the relevant calculations were based upon the rounded numbers. This press release also includes certain non-GAAP financial/alternative performance measures. ArcelorMittal presents EBITDA, and EBITDA/tonne, which are non-GAAP financial/alternative performance measures and calculated as shown in the Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations, as additional measures to enhance the understanding of operating performance. ArcelorMittal believes such indicators are relevant to describe trends relating to cash generating activity and provides management and investors with additional information for comparison of the Company’s operating results to the operating results of other companies. Segment information presented in this press release are prior to inter-segment eliminations and certain adjustments made to operating result of the segments to reflect corporate costs, income from non-steel operations (e.g., logistics and shipping services) and the elimination of stock margins between the segments. ArcelorMittal also presents net debt and change in working capital as additional measures to enhance the understanding of its financial position, changes to its capital structure and its credit assessment. ArcelorMittal also presents adjusted net income / (loss) as it believes it is a useful measure for the underlying business performance excluding impairment items, exceptional items and derecognition of deferred tax assets on disposal of ArcelorMittal USA. ArcelorMittal also presents free cash flow (FCF), which is a non-GAAP financial/alternative performance measure calculated as shown in the Condensed Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows, because it believes it is a useful supplemental measure for evaluating the strength of its cash generating capacity. The Company has revised the definition of free cash flow to include dividends paid to minority shareholders in order to reflect the measure it will use to determine dividends that will be paid under its new dividend policy. The Company also presents the ratio of net debt to EBITDA for the last twelve month period, which investors may find useful in understanding the Company's ability to service its debt. Such non-GAAP/alternative performance measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures applied by other companies. Non-GAAP financial/alternative performance measures should be read in conjunction with, and not as an alternative for, ArcelorMittal's financial information prepared in accordance with IFRS.

[2] LTIF figures presented for 1Q 2021 of 0.78x excludes ArcelorMittal Italia (to be deconsolidated as from 2Q 2021 onwards) and ArcelorMittal USA (no longer in scope as sold as part of the sale to Cleveland Cliffs on December 9, 2020). LTIF figures including the impact of ArcelorMittal Italia and ArcelorMittal USA, were 0.93x for 4Q 2020 and 1.01x for 1Q 2020.

[3] 1Q 2021 steel shipments of 16.5Mt as compared to 17.3Mt in 4Q 2020 (which included 1.8Mt of steel shipments for ArcelorMittal USA). On a scope adjusted basis 1Q 2021 shipments of 16.5Mt increased by 6.5% vs.15.5Mt in 4Q 2020.

[4] Impairment expenses in 4Q 2020 were $331 million following the revised future cashflow expectations of certain assets in Europe. Exceptional items in 4Q 2020 of $1.3 billion related to gain on the sale of ArcelorMittal USA6 offset by site restoration and termination charges related to the closure of the steel shop and blast furnace at Krakow (Poland). Impairment charges for 1Q 2020 were $92 million and relate to the permanent closure of the coke plant in Florange (France), at the end of April 2020. Exceptional items of $457 million for 1Q 2020 primarily include inventory related charges in NAFTA and Europe due to a weaker steel pricing outlook driven by COVID-19 impacts.

[5] See Appendix 5 for reconciliation of adjusted net income /(loss).

[19] 1Q 2021 also includes $89 million annual dividend income from Erdemir.

[21] According to this policy, the Board recommends a $0.30/share base dividend to be paid in June 2021, subject to the approval of shareholders at the AGM, and has approved a $570 million share buyback program which has commenced in March 2021 and is expected to be completed within the 2021 calendar year. This return is additional to the $650 million share buyback returned to shareholders from the proceeds of the partial sell-down of the Company’s equity stake in Cleveland Cliffs announced on February 9, 2021 and completed in 1Q 2021.